Cardhu Distillery, Speyside

Cardhu – Gaelic for “black rock” – was founded in the early 1800s by John Cumming, then a distiller of illicit whisky. The proximity of the river Spey was ideal for a distillery, and the surrounding hills offered a hide-out in case of raids by excise officials. Such unwanted visits were frequent, though John’s wife, Helen, was on hand to help: she would invite their visitors for dinner, raising a red flag behind the barn as a warning to her husband of their presence. In 1824, after the promulgation of the Excise Act, John purchased a licence to legally produce his whisky; in 1876, his daughter-in-law, Elizabeth, started developing the distillery into a successful commercial venture.